Walter Salles' film chronicles the devastating effects of Brazil's military regime through the lens of the Paiva family. Beginning in 1970, the film juxtaposes tropical beauty with rising political tension as leftist opponents attempt a daring rescue of their jailed supporters. When Rubens Paiva, the patriarch, is forcibly taken by the regime, his wife Eunice must navigate the painful journey of finding him. The narrative captures the poignant balance of family life amidst political turmoil, while the second half struggles to match the emotional intensity of the first, despite Fernanda Torres's powerful performance as Eunice.
The film opens in 1970, when leftist opponents of the ruling military junta try to spring their colleagues from jail by kidnapping a Swiss diplomat.
At times, the film recalls Alfonso Cuarón's Roma in its deft portrait of family life soon to be torn apart, heightening our sense of incoming tragedy through super-8 home footage taken by Vera.
...the piecemeal nature of her battle means the film's second half lacks the fluency of the first, though Salles is able to draw on a supremely self-possessed portrayal from Torres.
The traumatic legacy of Brazil's military dictatorship is brought painfully to light in Walter Salles' epic family drama, a box-office smash at home.
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